Category: Sports

The Los Angeles Chargers announced the signing of former Tampa Bay Buccaneers kicker Roberto Aguayo to a reserve/future contract.

Aguayo was chosen by the Buccaneers in the second round of the 2016 draft out of Florida State. He made 22 of 31 field goal attempts and 32 of 34 extra points for Tampa Bay in 2016.

Aguayo was cut by the Buccaneers on Aug. 12, claimed on waivers by the Chicago Bears the next day and cut by Chicago on Sept. 2, the deadline for NFL teams to reduce their rosters to the 53-player regular-season limit.

Aguayo was a member of the Carolina Panthers practice squad from Oct. 25-Dec. 12.

The Chargers used four kickers during the 2017 season.

Players who were not on an active roster at the end of the season are eligible to sign a reserve/future contract, and revert to the active roster at the start of the new league year. Aguayo is the 11th player to ink such a deal with the Chargers this offseason.

The Overwatch League, billed by organizers as the first major global professional e-sports league with competition organized by cities, begins play Wednesday with three matches at the former NBC Studios in Burbank.

All the league’s matches for its first season will be played at The Burbank Studios’ Blizzard Arena, whose capacity is about 400-500 and is sold out for matches Wednesday and Saturday, according to Kevin Scarpati, the Overwatch League’s associate public relations manager.

The league is aiming to play matches on a home-and-away basis “as soon as possible,” Scarpati said.

The league has two teams representing Los Angeles: the Los Angeles Gladiators, owned by Los Angeles Rams owner Stan Kroenke and his 37-year-old son Josh, and the Los Angeles Valiant, owned by Immortals, a Culver City-based e-sports organization.

The Valiant will face the San Francisco Shock in the opening match, set to begin at 4 p.m., while the Gladiators will face the Shanghai Dragons at 6 p.m. in the second match. The final match will pit the Dallas Fuel against the Seoul Dynasty at 8 p.m.

Other team owners in the 12-team league include the Kraft Group, which also owns the NFL’s New England Patriots, Comcast Spectacor, the owner of the Philadelphia Flyers, and Jeff Wilpon, the son of New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon.

Overwatch is a six-versus-six, team-based first-person shooter game where team members work to eliminate or repel opponents to make an attack on an objective or defend an objective.

The league’s minimum base salary is $50,000. Players will compete for $3.5 million in performance bonuses. The league also provides players with housing during the season, along with healthcare and retirement savings plans.

All matches will be streamed on the social video service Twitch in English, Korean and French, MLG.com, the MLG app, OverwatchLeague.com, and the Overwatch League companion app.

The Los Angeles Rams will face the Atlanta Falcons in an NFC wild card round game Saturday evening, the first NFL playoff game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum since 1994.

The NFC West champion Rams finished the regular season 11-5, their best record since 2003 when they were based in St. Louis. The Rams are the No. 3 seed in the NFC playoffs. Atlanta is seeded sixth with a 10-6 record and are the NFC’s second wild card team.

The Rams will be making their first playoff appearance since the 2004 season, when they defeated the Seattle Seahawks, 27-20, in a wild card round game, then lost to Atlanta, 47-17, in a divisional round game.

The Rams’ 31-year-old coach Sean McVay is the youngest coach to guide a team to the playoffs in NFL history. Ray Flaherty previously held the record for guiding the Boston Redskins to the 1936 NFL championship game, then the season’s only playoff game, when he was 33.

The Rams led the league in scoring, averaging 29.9 points per game. The Falcons were 15th, averaging 22.1 points. The Rams defense was 12th in the league, allowing 20.6 points per game. Atlanta was eighth, allowing 19.7.

In the most recent meeting between the teams, the Rams lost to Falcons, 42-14, on Dec. 11, 2016. Jeff Fisher was fired as their coach the next day.

If the Rams defeat Atlanta, they would play the NFC North champion Minnesota Vikings in a divisional round game Jan. 14 in Minneapolis.

The then-Los Angeles Raiders defeated the Denver Broncos, 42-24, in an AFC wild card round playoff game on Jan. 9, 1994, the most recent NFL playoff game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before Saturday evening.

Three former Rams who are members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame — Eric Dickerson, Tom Mack and Orlando Pace — will join the team captains at midfield to participate in the pregame coin toss.

The Coliseum torch will be lit by six members of the 1978 Rams — Frank Corral, Nolan Cromwell, Reggie Doss, Vince Ferragamo, Lawrence McCutcheon and Jackie Slater — part of the last Rams team to play a playoff game at the Coliseum before Saturday.

Isaac Bruce, the Rams career receiving leader, will be honored on the field in the end zone. Bruce was among the 15 modern era finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame announced Tuesday.

Slater, a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, will be honored during the first timeout of the second quarter as the alumnus of the game.

Bruce, former Rams receiver Torry Holt, Mack and Pace will pose for pictures with fans and sign autographs from 3:30-4:15 p.m. in visit the Vivid Seats Tailgate area. The four players will provide a preview of the game at 3:45 p.m.

The national anthem will be sung by actress-singer-songwriter Kelley Jakle, who appeared in the three “Pitch Perfect” movies and is a great- granddaughter of the late Baseball Hall of Fame member Branch Rickey.

Snoop Dogg will perform at halftime.

National Guard Staff Sgt. Michael Missel of Whittier will be honored during the first quarter. Missel served in two deployments in Iraq and was awarded the Iraqi Campaign Medal, the Global War on Terror Service Medal, the Army Commendation Medal and Combat Action Badge.

Georgia will play for college football’s national championship next Monday after making the greatest comeback in Rose Bowl Gamehistory.

The Bulldogs overcame a 17-point deficit late in the first half to defeat Oklahoma, 54-48, in double overtime in the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Monday.

The victory puts Georgia (13-1) into Monday’s national championship game in Atlanta against Alabama, a 24-6 winner over Clemson, in the other semifinal, the Sugar Bowl, played later Monday in New Orleans.

“We didn’t play the way we were capable of, but the best news is we get a chance to play again,” Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart said.

This was the first Rose Bowl Game that went into overtime. College football added overtime in 1996. Each team is guaranteed a possession. Additional overtime periods are played if the score is tied at the end of overtime.

Sony Michel took a direct snap and ran 27 yards for the winning touchdown in the second overtime before a crowd announced at 92,844.

Lorenzo Carter blocked a 27-yard field goal attempt by Austin Seibert on the first possession of the second overtime.

Georgia’s Rodrigo Blankenship kicked a 38-yard field goal on the opening possession of the first overtime. Seibert responded with a 33-yard field goal for Oklahoma.

The Bulldogs sent the game into overtime on Nick Chubb’s 2-yard touchdown run with 55 seconds left in regulation. The Sooners had taken a 45-38 lead with 6:52 remaining on strong safety Steven Parker’s 46-yard fumble return for a touchdown.

Michel ran for 181 yards and three touchdowns on 11 carries, caught a 13-yard pass from Jake Fromm in the first quarter for Georgia’s first points and was selected as the offensive player of the game. Michel set the Rose Bowl Game record for highest average per carry with a minimum 10 carries, 16.5 yards. The previous record was 15.7 yards by Michigan’s Tyrone Wheatley in the 1993 game.

Bulldogs linebacker Roquan Smith made a game-high 11 tackles and was selected as the defensive player of the game.

Georgia trailed 31-14 with six seconds left in the second quarter. The previous largest deficit overcome in the Rose Bowl Game was 15 points by USC in its 52-49 victory over Penn State in the 2017 game. The Trojans trailed 42-25 in the third quarter.

The comeback began when Blankenship kicked a Rose Bowl-record 55-yard field goal as time expired in the first half, cutting the Sooners lead to 31- 17. The previous record was 52 yards, set by Rich Spangler of Ohio State in 1985 and tied a year later by Rob Houghtlin of Iowa.

Only two teams in the previous 103 Rose Bowl Games had overcome a double-digit deficit at halftime — Alabama in 1926 and Michigan in 1989.

The Bulldogs scored the first 21 points of the second half to take their first lead, 38-31. Chubb and Michel ran for 50- and 38-yard touchdowns in the third quarter and Fromm threw a 4-yard touchdown pass to Javon Wims with 13:57 left in the fourth quarter.

The game was the highest-scoring Rose Bowl, one point more than the 101 points scored in the 2017 game.

Mayfield completed 23 of 35 passes for 287 yards and two touchdowns and had one pass intercepted. Mayfield also caught a pass for a third score and Rodney Anderson ran for two touchdowns for the Sooners (12-2).

Chubb ran for 145 yards and two touchdowns. Fromm completed 20 of 29 passes for 210 yards and two touchdowns.

Oklahoma outgained the Bulldogs, 531 yards to 527, and led 24-21 in first downs and 32:58-27:02 in time of possession.

“We did a lot of really good things on both sides of the ball, but we certainly weren’t perfect,” Oklahoma coach Lincoln Riley said. “Had some opportunities, let the game get back a little bit closer there in the third quarter, and at that point … it was going to come down to one play here or there, and it did.”

The Sooners scored touchdowns on each of their first three possessions. Oklahoma opened the scoring 3:29 into the game on a 13-yard pass from Mayfield to Marquise Brown, who played at College of the Canyons in Santa Clarita in 2016.

Anderson ran for 9- and 41-yard touchdowns on the Sooners’ next two possessions. Seibert kicked a 38-yard field goal the next time Oklahoma had the ball.

The play that ended with Mayfield catching a 2-yard touchdown pass from CeeDee Lamb six seconds before halftime began with Mayfield pitching the ball to Flowers, a fullback, who ran left, then handed the ball to Lamb who ran right, then threw a jump pass to Mayfield.

It was the first time a quarterback had caught a touchdown pass in the Rose Bowl Game since USC’s Matt Leinhart in 2004.

The Rose Bowl Game dispenses with its traditional Big Ten versus Pac- 12 matchup once every three years to serve as a College Football Playoff Semifinal.

The matchup was determined by the final College Football Playoff rankings, which are made by a 13-member committee of five former coaches, four athletic directors, two former administrators, a college president and a former sports reporter.

Oklahoma, the Big 12 Conference champion, was second in the final rankings, one spot ahead of Southeastern Conference champion Georgia. Atlantic Coast Conference champion Clemson was ranked first and Alabama fourth.

Defenseman Jonathon Blum from Ladera Ranch in south Orange County was among the first 23 players announced for the 2018 U.S. Olympic men’s hockey team.

Blum, who will turn 29 Jan. 30, was chosen in the first round of the 2007 NHL draft by the Nashville Predators, the 23rd overall selection. He seven goals and 17 assists in 110 NHL games with the Predators and Minnesota Wild.

Blum is current playing for Admiral Vladivostok of the Russian-based Kontinental Hockey League. Blum played AAA midget hockey with the Artesia-based California Wave Hockey Club

With the NHL prohibiting players under contract, including those assigned to the American Hockey League, from playing in the Olympics, USA Hockey, the sport’s national governing body, selected a team consisting of 15 players who play professionally in Europe, three in the AHL and four in college.

“We really like our roster,” said Jim Johannson, general manager of the 2018 U.S. Olympic men’s ice hockey team and the assistant executive director of hockey operations for USA Hockey on Monday. “It’s a group that brings versatility and experience and includes players who have a lot of passion about representing our country.”

Two additional goaltenders will be added to the roster by mid-January, Johannson said.

All but one of the players has played for the U.S. in international competition, including Blum, who played for the U.S. in the 2008 and 2009 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championships.

The U.S. men’s hockey team will begin play in the Olympics Feb. 14 with a preliminary round game against Slovenia.

The roster announcement was made during the second intermission of the NHL Winter Classic at Citi Field in New York City, along with the announcements of the rosters for the women’s Olympic team and paralympic sled hockey team.

The 129th Rose Parade stepped off on time in a peaceful and festive Pasadena Monday, with 24 awards given to floats and a B-2 bomber soaring overhead.

The Sweepstakes Award, for most beautiful entry, encompassing float design, floral presentation and entertainment, went to a Pasadena investment firm, Singpoli American BD, for its “Rising Above Paradise.”

Three massive flowered wheels, pushed down the parade route by human beings, won the Crown City Innovator Award for most outstanding use of imagination, innovation and technology. That float, “Make Your Own Momentum,” was sponsored by “The Grand Tour,” an Amazon TV show.

Volunteers from Burbank won the Founder Award `Sand-Sational Helpers, named the most outstanding float built and decorated by volunteers from a community or organization. Other self-built floats winning awards came from Cal Poly campuses, Downey, La Canada-Flintridge and Sierra Madre.

It was a quiet night in Pasadena, as quiet as could be expected with tens of thousands of people on Colorado Boulevard and side streets, both welcoming the New Year and staking out prized parade viewing concrete.

Actor Gary Sinise, best known for his role as Lt. Dan Taylor in “Forrest Gump,” will serve as grand marshal of the 5 1/2-mile procession, which will begin at 8 a.m.

The parade featured 39 floral-covered floats, 20 equestrian groups and 20 marching bands, plus the marching bands from Oklahoma University and the University of Georgia,.

Among the marching bands taking part were Australia’s Marching Koalas; Kyoto Tachibana High School from Kyoto, Japan; Banda De Musica Herberto Lopez of Panama; the Los Angeles Unified School District All District High School Honor Band; the U.S. Marine Corps West Coast Composite Band; and the Burlington Teen Tour Band from Burlington, Canada.

The highlight of the parade, however, is always the array of intricately designed and decorated floats. This year’s lineup includes floats sponsored by a variety of Southland cities, along with groups and companies including the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Honda, Dole Packaged Foods, Kaiser Permanente, Lucy Pet, Trader Joe’s and Shriner’s Hospital for Children.

The Donate Life float, an annual fixture in the parade, will again pay tribute to organ donors. Among those riding on the float will be baseball Hall of Famer Rod Carew, who received a heart and kidney from the late NFL tight end Konrad Reuland, and former NFL quarterback and coach Sam Wyche, who received a heart just hours before being placed on hospice care.

A float by the United Sikh Mission will feature a replica of the world’s largest free kitchen, which is located at the Golden Temple in Amritsar, India.

Once the parade concludes, the floats will be on display until Tuesday during the Showcase of Floats at Sierra Madre and Washington boulevards.

Parade-goers will notice a stepped-up presence of law enforcement officials. Police took the added step this year of closing off the parade route earlier than usual, with barricades going up at 10 p.m. New Year’s Eve in an effort to better control traffic through the area. Bomb-sniffing dogs, a “no drone zone” and barricades blocking vehicle traffic from entering the parade route at its 56 intersections are all part of the security plan.

Oklahoma and Georgia will meet in the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Monday in Pasadena, with both teams having players who played on the high school or community college level in Los Angeles County.

The player with a local tie that figures to make the biggest impact is Oklahoma sophomore receiver Marquise Brown, who leads the team with 981 receiving yards and yard per catch, 20.0. Brown was the leading receiver for College of the Canyons in Santa Clarita in 2016 following a high school career at Chaminade-Madonna High School in Hollywood, Florida.

Brown said he was recruited to attend College of the Canyons by its receivers coach, David Banks, through a friend, Jeremy Lubin, a Cougars receiver who also came from Broward Country in Florida, to come to the school.

“I was skeptical about coming at first, but he talked me into it,” Brown said.

Brown said at College of the Canyons “they taught me about hard work.”

“I’d always been a hard worker growing up, but they taught me to never take no reps off, always go hard,” Brown said.

Living on his own for the first time and having a job for the first time were tough, “but it helped me grow up,” Brown said.

Brown worked as a ride operator on the X2, a 215-foot-tall roller coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain when he attended College of the Canyons, a job he described as “pretty fun.”

Brown said he chose Oklahoma to complete his college career “because when I first came on my visit it felt like home and I knew coach (Lincoln) Riley … was going to do a good job of playing calling and getting me involved in the offense.”

Brown said he also made an official visit to West Virginia.

Brown quickly became a vital part of the Sooners offense. In his second game, Brown set a school record with 141 receiving yards in the second half of the 56-14 victory over Tulane Sept. 16, including an 87-yard touchdown reception. The performance led him to be selected as the Big 12 Conference’s Newcomer of the Week.

Brown received the honor a second time when he set the school record for receiving yards, 265, Nov. 4, in a 62-52 victory over Oklahoma State, then ranked 12th in The Associated Press poll. The 265 receiving yards were the ninth highest total in Big 12 Conference history and the most by a player from a Power 5 conference team this season.

Brown also tied the school record for receiving yards in a half, 178, in the first half.

He is the first player in Oklahoma history with multiple catches of at least 80 yards in a career.

Brown describes his team as “being full of energy, fun and we compete until the last whistle.”

He is majoring in business administration because “I want to get into real estate after football,” he said.

Sooners redshirt sophomore third-string nose guard Dillon Faamatau was a two-time first-team All-Southern Section and All-Suburban League selection when he played at Norwalk High School. He began his college career at Arizona State, redshirting in 2015, then left because of what he described as “tension between coaches” and “at little bit of … being immature as a freshman.”

Faamatau played at Cerritos College in 2016, making 32 tackles in 10 games.

Faamatau made a nonbinding verbal commitment to attend USC “but through the grapevines coach Riley and coach Thib (a reference to defensive ends coach Calvin Thibodeaux) found me while there were out here recruiting.”

The 6-foot-3, 305-pound Faamatau has played in all 13 of Oklahoma’s games, making nine tackles.

No Georgia players played on the high school level in California. Second-string receiver Ahkil Crumpton played at Los Angeles Valley College in Van Nuys in 2015 and 2016 after graduating from West Catholic High School in Philadelphia.

Crumpton said he knew in high school that his grades were not high enough for him to be eligible for a college athletic scholarship.

“My mother told me to just comb the country” for top community college programs, Crumpton said.

Crumpton said then tweeted Jaelen Strong, who attended his same high school and went on to play at Arizona State, the Houston Texans and Jacksonville Jaguars, after attending Pierce College in Woodland Hills.

Crumpton attended Pierce “for two or three days, the coaches had left,” then went to Valley College, helping it to an 11-0 season in 2016, when he was selected as the MVP of the American Division Pacific Championship Bowl.

“I did a lot of growing up coming here to L.A., being out here at 17, by myself, no family members,” said Crumpton, who has caught five passes for 96 yards and one touchdown in 11 games with the Bulldogs. “I learned how to survive as a 17-year-old kid. I learned how to shop, spend my money, save my money.”

Crumpton said he worked at a 99 Cents Only Store in the west San Fernando Valley while attending Valley College.

Georgia has another tie to Southern California through its offensive coordinator, Jim Chaney, who was an assistant coach at Cal State Fullerton from 1985-1987 and its offensive coordinator from 1988-92, when it dropped football.

The Rose Bowl Game dispenses with its traditional Big Ten versus Pac- 12 matchup once every three years to serve as a College Football Playoff Semifinal.

The matchup was determined by the final College Football Playoff rankings, which are made by a 13-member committee of five former coaches, four athletic directors, two former administrators, a college president and a former sports reporter.

Big 12 Conference champion Oklahoma (12-1) was second in the final rankings, one spot ahead of Southeastern Conference champion Georgia (12-1).

Top-ranked Clemson (12-1), the Atlantic Coast Conference champion, will face fourth-ranked Alabama (11-1) in the other semifinal on New Year’s Day, the Sugar Bowl.

The winners will meet for the national championship next Monday in Atlanta.

The Sooners have won eight consecutive games and 18 of their last 19. Oklahoma is quarterbacked by Heisman Trophy winner Baker Mayfield, who leads the Football Bowl Subdivision in passing efficiency rating, 203.8, completion percentage, .710, yards per pass attempt, 11.8, yards per completion, 16.6, and pass plays of 20-plus yards, 75. His second in touchdown passes with 41.

Oklahoma is first among FBS teams in total offense, averaging 583.3 yards per game and are fourth in scoring, averaging 44.9 points per game.

Both teams will be making their second appearances in the Rose Bowl Game. The Bulldogs defeated UCLA, 9-0, in the 1943 Rose Bowl Game, scoring all their points in the fourth quarter. The Sooners defeated Washington State, 34- 14, on New Year’s Day 2003.

The game will be the first matchup between the two teams. Georgia will be playing in California for the first time since 1960 when it lost to USC, 10-3, at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Oklahoma will be playing in the state for the first time since its 17-14 victory over Oregon in the 2005 Holiday Bowl in San Diego.

Former UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel, now a college football studio analyst for CBS, said he expects “an offensive game, which I think is going to better suited for Oklahoma.”

“If Georgia can keep it a time-consuming, ball-control deal and can get some stops, then Georgia will win the game, but I think that will be a hard thing to get done with Baker Mayfield and company,” Neuheisel told City News Service.

The Los Angeles Rams will face the Atlanta Falcons in an NFC wild card round game Saturday night, the first NFL playoff game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum since 1993.

The Rams concluded the regular season with a 34-13 loss to theSan Francisco 49ers Sunday at the Coliseum, with running back Todd Gurley and defensive tackle Aaron Donald, both Pro Bowl selections, and quarterback Jared Goff among the 13 starters given the day off by coach Sean McVay to avoid the possibility of injuries and to give them rest in advance of the playoffs.

The NFC West champion Rams finished the regular season 11-5, their best record since 2003 when they were based in St. Louis. The Rams are the No. 3 seed in the NFC playoffs. Atlanta is seeded sixth with a 10-6 record and are the NFC’s second wild card team.

If the Rams defeat the Falcons, they would play NFC North champion Minnesota Vikings in a divisional round playoff game Jan. 14 in Minneapolis, under the playoff brackets announced by the NFL on Sunday. The Rams last playoff victory was in 2004, when they defeated the Seattle Seahawks, 27-20, in a wild card round game.

The Rams never led Sunday, allowing the first 10 points and trailing 10-3 at the end of the first quarter, 20-6 at halftime and 27-6 entering the fourth quarter.

Sean Mannion, who started in place of Goff, completed 20 of 34 passes for 169 yards, in the first start of his three-season NFL career. Lance Dunbar ran eight yards with six minutes, 40 seconds to play for the Rams lone touchdown.

Sam Ficken kicked a 23-yard field goal in the first quarter and 21- yard field goal as time expired in the first half for the Rams.

The Rams were outgained, 463 yards to 251, and trailed 25-15 in first downs. They led in time of possession, 30:51-29:09.

Jimmy Garoppolo threw for 292 yards and two touchdowns in his fifth victory in five games since becoming the 49ers quarterback Dec. 5. Garoppolo completed 20 of 33 passes and had two passes intercepted. Carlos Hyde ran for 90 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries for San Francisco (6-10).

Robbie Gould opened the scoring with a 33-yard field goal on the game’s opening drive. He also kicked a 48-yard field goal with five minutes left in the second quarter for the 49ers.

The then-Los Angeles Raiders defeated the Denver Broncos, 42-24, in an AFC wild card round playoff game on Jan. 9, 1994, the most recent NFL playoff game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

All the scenarios of the Chargers making the playoffs depended on the Tennessee Titans losing or tying the Jacksonville Jaguars Sunday. The Chargers also would have needed the Buffalo Bills to lose or tie the Miami Dolphins or the Baltimore Ravens to defeat or tie the Cincinnati Bengals.

However, Tennessee’s 15-10 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars ended the Chargers playoff hopes. The Chargers and Titans both ended the season with 9-7 records but Tennessee had the tiebreaker advantage.

The Chargers have not made the playoffs since 2013. They were seeking to join the 1992 Chargers as the only NFL teams to make the playoffs after an 0- 4 start.

Philip Rivers threw three touchdown passes as the Chargers scored the final 23 points to overcome a 10-7 second-quarter deficit to complete their first season sweep over the Raiders since 2014.

The Chargers took the lead for good five minutes, 21 seconds before halftime on Rivers 56-yard touchdown pass to Tyrell Williams. The Chargers increased their lead to 20-10 on their next possession, as Rivers threw a 6- yard touchdown pass to Keenan Allen with 30 seconds left in the first half.

The Chargers got a 25-yard field goal from Nick Rose and a 62-yard touchdown pass from Rivers to Travis Benjamin on their first two possessions of the second half before a pro-Raiders capacity crowd announced at 25,430.

The game was the Raiders first in the Los Angeles area since they returned to Oakland following the 1994 season.

The Chargers outgained Oakland, 495 yards to 336, and led 26-14 in first downs and 33:20-26:40 in time of possession. The Chargers converted seven of 13 third downs, 54 percent and the Raiders four of 11, 36 percent.

Oakland failed to get a first down on three fourth-down conversion opportunities. The Chargers failed to get a first down on their only fourth down conversion.

The Chargers opened the scoring 13:19 before halftime. Melvin Gordon ran for 11 yards and his fumble was recovered by Allen, who ran 27 yards for the touchdown.

All the scenarios of the Chargers making the playoffs depended on the Tennessee Titans losing or tying the Jacksonville Jaguars Sunday. The Chargers also would have needed the Buffalo Bills to lose or tie the Miami Dolphins or the Baltimore Ravens to defeat or tie the Cincinnati Bengals.

However, Tennessee’s 15-10 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars ended the Chargers playoff hopes. The Chargers and Titans both ended the season with 9-7 records but Tennessee had the tiebreaker advantage.

The Chargers have not made the playoffs since 2013. They were seeking to join the 1992 Chargers as the only NFL teams to make the playoffs after an 0- 4 start.

Philip Rivers threw three touchdown passes as the Chargers scored the final 23 points to overcome a 10-7 second-quarter deficit to complete their first season sweep over the Raiders since 2014.

The Chargers took the lead for good five minutes, 21 seconds before halftime on Rivers 56-yard touchdown pass to Tyrell Williams. The Chargers increased their lead to 20-10 on their next possession, as Rivers threw a 6- yard touchdown pass to Keenan Allen with 30 seconds left in the first half.

The Chargers got a 25-yard field goal from Nick Rose and a 62-yard touchdown pass from Rivers to Travis Benjamin on their first two possessions of the second half before a pro-Raiders capacity crowd announced at 25,430.

The game was the Raiders first in the Los Angeles area since they returned to Oakland following the 1994 season.

The Chargers outgained Oakland, 495 yards to 336, and led 26-14 in first downs and 33:20-26:40 in time of possession. The Chargers converted seven of 13 third downs, 54 percent and the Raiders four of 11, 36 percent.

Oakland failed to get a first down on three fourth-down conversion opportunities. The Chargers failed to get a first down on their only fourth down conversion.

The Chargers opened the scoring 13:19 before halftime. Melvin Gordon ran for 11 yards and his fumble was recovered by Allen, who ran 27 yards for the touchdown.

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The Raiders (6-10) took a 10-7 lead on Derek Carr’s 87-yard touchdown pass to Amari Cooper and Giorgio Tavecchio’s 40-yard field goal.